Wind and Spirit
by Lyoria
Summary: Yusuke and the crew are called to another mission, new members as well as old come along.  lots of lemons! lots of drama! possible limes :3  WARNING: foul language, bloody scenes, explicit mature content
1. Prologue

Prologue

Cassandra drifted in the darkness, unable to move, unable to speak, just drifting. Her body felt numb, cold, and weightless. Calmly she turned her head, looking around her once more, hoping to see something, anything, but all she saw was the darkness. It was more than shadows, it was so much more, but what, she didn't know. She wasn't sure how long she had been floating there, minutes, days, months, or years? Time just blurred together. She sighed softly, unsure why she did this to herself. _Why am I always asking questions?_ she thought, _Why must I always question this, knowing I can't get answers? How did I get here? Why am I here? Where is here? How long have I been here?_ It was always the same questions, and always the same result, the darkness. Never changing, never moving, just existing. Cassandra knew very little about herself, she knew her name, but she had drifted for so long that she seemed to of forgotten what she'd looked like, what her skin felt like, what her hair smelled like, did she eve have hair? How old was she? Where did she come from? Was she born in the darkness? If so, where were her parents? Is this death? Limbo? Did she even believe in these things? She didn't know. It should bother her, it should scare her, worry her, make her angry. But she felt nothing. There was no emotion, no movement, only thought. Was that all she was? Just drifting thoughts? She couldn't be, she had a name. Surely she existed on another plane than mental. She remembered another world, green grass, blue skies, she remembered warmth, and cold, but at times, she'd forget. Was that why she was in the darkness? To forget? What was she supposed to forget? Had she already forgotten it? She didn't know, if she had, then why was she still there? At moments, the darkness felt maddening, she didn't want to be there any longer, but she couldn't leave, she didn't know how.

White. There was something white above her. It was getting bigger, it was coming closer to her. No, it wasn't white, it was light. Light. It was the first light she'd seen in…she didn't know. She had no idea when she last saw a light. But she knew she'd seen it before. The light was beautiful, it shined so brightly, casting away the darkness. She wanted to touch it, she wanted to touch it so badly. Cassandra wanted to cry, she felt warm, she loved how it felt. Like ice was melting off of her body, the light was warming her, soothing away the numbness. Fingers. There were fingers stretching at the light, ten of them. Hands, her hands. Her soft pink hands, stretching up to the light to touch it. Her slender fingers stretched until they were around the light, it lowered gently into her hands. She leaned forward to look at the light better, she felt something wet on her, she moved her fingers to touch the wetness. Her cheeks were wet with tears, she had a face, and she was crying. She was happy, she felt her lips spread wide into a smile, her first smile while here. It was the light, all thanks to the light. She could move, she could feel, she was happy. Cassandra then looked at the ball, it was small and so bright. It was warm to the touch, and yet she wasn't touching it, it merely floated in her hands. She looked closer at the light, it was in a glass orb, she looked closer at it and saw a face. Her face. Her crystal blue eyes, and her long dark lashes casting shadows on her rosy cheeks streaked with tears, and her long dark locks that flowed and bounced as they surrounded her ebony face and creamy shoulders. She smiled, her face, it was all her own. She remembered now, her face, she was so young. Cassandra heard a small sound, it was bright and twinkled like a bell, a giggle? She just giggled. It seemed so strange to her that she began to laugh, her first laugh! Her heart pounded, the feeling so strange and yet welcoming. All of it, her memory flooding with these new things, her body, her heart, her laugh. It was all new to her, and yet felt like welcoming an old friend.

As Cassandra thought of the next thing to do, she looked to the glass orb, the light was moving. It was swirling within the orb, turning over itself, pushing and pulling at itself, it's as if the light was alive and couldn't stop. It then slowed, and it changed, the light was forming an image of a face, it wasn't Cassandra's. She now knew her face, this one was different. A man. It was the face of a man. But who? Her mind twisted, as if she knew but couldn't remember. She had seen him before, but where? When? Why couldn't she remember? Who was he to her? Her mind searched for answers, but as she looked at his face deeper, her heart raced, her cheeks flushed with heat. Why was she reacting this way? Who was this man? His shaggy red hair was swept back from his face, his eyes were shining and colored silver, his face exuded strength and power, but his smile shone through with devotion and affection. As she looked at him more, she noticed his eyes were looking directly at her, and she heard a sound come from the light. No, not the light, from the man. He spoke to her, she was unsure what he said at first, but then he repeated it. "dove…" she felt strange hearing the word. It filled her with hope, but at the same time hurt her. She was confused, she knew that a dove was a bird, but why did he say it like it was more? Why would him saying it affect her like this? "…dove…" he spoke the word again, she watched as his eyes sparkled and his grin widened, "…my little dove…". At that moment, she felt her heart stop. Her mind finally began to work, she remembered now, it is something more. He is calling her dove. Tears poured from her cheeks, her face burned with pain, how could she forget him? Her lover, her friend, her world. Her heart ached, her face burned, and her head spun. His face filling her mind, his laughter in her ears. She wanted to scream, she couldn't stop the tears, the pain in her heart, it became too much. "Daniel…my Daniel…please come back."


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Within the walls of the spirit world's palace, Koenma sat happily at his desk, stamping file after file. He sighed heavily as he placed the last form aside and fell back into his plush red chair. "Phew! Finally caught up…it took nearly two years, but the back up from Yusuke's fights is over with." He leaned forward and wiped the sweat from his brow. Yes, it had been a long and quiet two years since Yusuke's return from the demon world, his merciless training had proved to be hell for the spirit world. Countless apparitions needing placement in hell, the lives they'd taken needing placement in heaven, as well as all the damage and complaints from other apparitions. Yusuke may have become stronger, but that sure as hell didn't mean he matured any.

Koenma heaved a heavy sigh of relief, there was finally a moment for him and the spirit world to take a breath. He then rolled his head to the left and looked over at the blue and muscular ogre near by. George had spent the better part of five hours sifting through countless files to be sure that all the proper items had been stamped for approval or had been cast aside. Slowly George's head came up from his stack of paper work, he could feel Koenma staring him down from across the room and he slowly turned up to look back. Just over the rim of his reading glasses he could see that Koenma was giving him a very distinct look that George had come to know quite well over the years. "What can I get for you Koenma, sir?" as George spoke, Koenma sighed heavily again and patted his gut with his chubby little hand. "Ogre, I'm famished, fix me some grilled squid." Koenma whined as he fell forward to rest his head and arms on his desk.

George groaned, he then glanced over at his stack of paper work and let a heavy sigh himself. To him it looked as if the stacks before him had actually grown more, despite the work he still put down his papers and stood to go to a small station across the room. "Yes Koenma, sir." As George stood to fulfill the order, he noticed something odd about Koenma. Once George's back was turned Koenma groaned and reached for the console beside him on the desk, he punched a few colorful buttons and the large screen that hung before the desk lowered itself and began to scan through images. The screen exploded to life with images of the human world, and the demon world, he was bored and flipping through several different images as if he was changing the channel on TV. He envied their ignorance some days, not knowing what he did, just living life day in and day out. He then clicked off the screen and sat back up as George placed the plate of squid before him, Koenma slowly popped a bite of squid in his mouth and let the flavors over take him. He began to drool on himself as he devoured the rest of the dish, George merely watched in horror and disgust. Once Koenma was done he leaned back and grinned wide, the delicious flavors took him over, he was now content and could feel himself slowly slipping into a food comma. He then pushed the plate to George and sighed, "I want another ogre, that was delicious!"

George chuckled softly, and scratched the back of his head as he looked down at the empty plate and then to Koenma. Koenma felt George's eyes on him now and looked up at him, "What is it?" Koenma groaned out. George chucked again and lowered his gaze to the floor, embarrassed and worried about what he was about to say, "Well sir…lately the squid is all you eat…and well…" George looked away bashfully. Koenma began to stare down George, getting impatient for an answer, "What are you trying to say, ogre?" Koenma then gasped and stood in his chair, "We're not out of squid are we?" Koenma looked up to George hoping he that it wasn't the case.

"Well, no sir, we're not out." George responded softly, still unsure if he should keep talking.

"Well then, ogre. What is it?" Koenma continued to grow impatient.

"It's just that you're…"

"I'm what?"

"Well its your….it seems you've…well…"

"Spit it out damnit!"

"Well sir you've gained some weight and it's quite obvious! You should start on…salads…"

"….I've what?"

"…um…you've gotten…fat?" George immediately started praying in his head, as well as trying to think of a way out of what he just said.

Koenma sighed and hopped out of his chair, he then folded his arms behind his back and walked around behind George, their backs to one another. George was too frightened to turn around and see what Koenma's face was. But at this point the couldn't help himself, he turned and looked down at Koenma, and his face was one of absolute anger. George gulped hard and every muscle tensed in his body for what was about to happen. Koenma then sighed and looked away, "So, you think I've…'gotten fat'?" Koenma said in a monotone voice despite his face. George let out another nervous chuckle and began to rub the back of his head sheepishly, "Well sir, I wouldn't say 'fat'. That was the wrong word, it's more…well…" at this point George couldn't help but let his sight slip down to Koenma's gut, which had actually gotten larger. Without realizing it, George had let his gaze linger too long, once he looked up though, it was too late. Koenma was fuming and he lunged up at George and began to pound his chubby fists into the poor ogre's head. George tried to cover his head with his arms but it did him no good, Koenma continued to hit him over and over again. Once he was done, Koenma stopped on George's face and used it as a spring board to push himself up to the desk. "There, do you think I could give such a beating if I was 'fat'?" he sneered as he peered down at George's now bruised face, his head spinning from the poundings that he could barely speak, only mumble gibberish.

Just then a loud alarm went off throughout the entire palace, the piercing noise filling each corridor and every room. Koenma looked around shockingly and then looked to the door as it swung open, an ogre came rushing in gasping for air and nearly stumbled over George on his way in, "Lord Koenma, sir! Someone has broken into the King's safe!" he shouted as he reached the desk. Koenma lunged for the console on the desk and pushed a large red button on it and shouted loudly into the microphone next to it, "Protect the artifacts at all cost! Don't let the thieves escape!" The corridors of the palace leading to the vault then filled with guards as they quickly came into position, one stood behind three rows of apparitions that were on their knees, "Don't let them leave alive! Make sure that the artifacts aren't damaged!" as he shouted the order he prepared himself for the unknown. The door to the vault swung open and a figure then stepped from the shadows of the vault, a bulging violet sack in his hands. "Attack!" as soon as the order was made, guard after guard charged at the figure and turned into dust a mere two feet from the figure. "Pull back men! He has a force field!" the men then stopped and returned to their original position. The thieves then walked into the light and exposed their faces to the light. It was a very young man; tall, leanly muscled, covered in scars from head to toe, and his clothes were tattered and dirty. His shaggy red hair fell to just above his shoulders, and his brown eyes seemed distant and hollow. Just behind him was a small and chubby old woman, her back hunched greatly, and her old frail hands clutched to a wooden staff that was almost as tall as the man in front of her. Her silver hair fell in waves down to her feet, nearly touching the floor. But her face was beyond horrific, her eyes were large and a soul piercing black, deadening and consuming. Her thin and dry lips pulled back into a tight and wicked grin. "How cute, not only have the seals improved on the door, but I see Koenma has upped security as well. Let me guess, this isn't the first attempt on the safe." she cackled out as she peered around the room, "yes, so many guards, too bad you all die here."

Koenma's mouth fell open as he looked on in horror at the woman, his mind boggling as to what a woman of her strength would do here. He then shuddered as he watched his security guards scream in pain and horror as their limbs were ripped apart, what scared him the most from the image was that neither the woman or man moved, they merely stood in the exact same place. The woman cackled loudly as she watched the blood spray onto the walls and floor, once the screams stopped, and the blood stopped flowing. The woman took a step forward and kicked a head that had rolled to her feet. "Worthless beings, didn't stand a chance. Come now, we're leaving." she said as she looked at the man behind her, without moving or making a noise he followed behind her, she walked to the center of the room and took her staff firmly in hand and slammed it on the floor hard then once more. The blood from the guards swirled into a whirlpool around them, the blood then flowed to the ceiling and fell back down, the two were now gone from the room, all that was left was the bodies that littered the floor.

Koenma shook in fear as he fell back into his chair, the ogres that came into the room to view the show were shaking themselves, "S-Sir…she d-didn't move once…?" whispered one of the other ogres, afraid to eve breathe at this moment. Koenma let looked up to the screen, "She didn't…" he whispered softly as he began pushing buttons once more, George then asked softly, "Koenma sir, who was that?" At the question, Koenma stopped dead, he then let out a sigh and turned to the ogres in the room and spoke, "I need the guard's families notified about their deaths, and please get Botan here immediately." Slowly the ogres did as asked and all left the room. But only George remained, he went to ask his question once more, but Koenma stopped him. "George, you're the only one I'm going to let hear this, but her name has to remain a secret, her information is strictly a need to know basis. But that, was the demon witch, Villayna."


	3. Chapter 2

_*Author's Note: For those of you reading this, I want to go ahead and state that I've searched nearly every episode I could think of that had them in it and never heard names. So I ask you, please: IF ANYONE KNOWS THE NAME OF KEIKO YUKIMURA'S PARENTS, LET ME KNOW! I will change it. For the time being they are Mr. and Mrs. Yukimura. I apologize. *_

_*I own no rights to Yu Yu Hakusho. I cannot guarantee regular updates. But I will post new chapters as I get the opportunity to write them.*_

Chapter 2

Yusuke walked down the street with the biggest grin spread across his face. His cheeks were smudged with dirt, his hair was ruffled and he was dripping with sweat. Yet he grinned bigger than he'd ever grinned before. Today was a good day. No. Today was an amazing day! It had been a year since his reunion with his friends. Kuwabara was now graduated from high school and attending the local University; Keiko as well. Kurama was currently helping to run his father's company and Hiei was still doing patrol through demon world, returning any humans that may of accidently stumbled their way through. Spirit world continued to keep a watchful eye on the borders between Human and Demon world, now that the barrier was gone. But for the most part, demons had kept their word and never harmed humans. At least, not without heavy consequence. The few demons that did happen to break this law were not only killed, but their deaths were strung out. Repeatedly they were forced to suffer for disobeying the greatest law of demon world. So far, only two had ever broken the law. To this day, they still lived and suffered for their crimes.

And per Genkai's final wish, after her death sometime ago, her home was now used as a safe house to apparitions who ventured between the human and demon world. Yusuke would make the occasional trip up there, just to make sure the grounds were taken care of. Yusuke and Keiko had been an official couple, Yusuke relentlessly trying to give Keiko the real relationship she deserved but never got. Yep, life was sweet. And it was about to get even better. Because stowed safely away inside of Yusuke's pocket was a little red box that meant he'd finally keep his promise to Keiko. After so many years, after waiting so long for this day, for this perfect moment, he'd finally do it. He was on his way now to shower, get changed, and run off to see Keiko. To surprise her with the one and ultimate question he should have asked ages ago, the one question he knows she's been dying to hear…

"What the fuck?" Yusuke shouted as he gazed at the tall and roaring flames of the Yukimura's restaurant. Black smoke billowed from the door and windows and up towards the sky, red and orange flames licked climbed the walls inside and licked at the air surrounding the building. People stood in fear outside as sirens were heard in the distance, headed for the building. Yusuke glanced around at the crowd surrounding the building, not a single one of them was Keiko's parents. He ran up to the crowd and was about to ask, when his suspicions were confirmed. He heard the screams of Keiko's mother from inside the restaurant. People stood away from the building shaking their heads, pained looks on their faces that said, "I want to help, but I don't want to die." Yusuke groaned at the people in the crowd and dove in through the door.

Smoke immediately clouded his vision, thick and heavy, enough to make his eyes water. He crouched down low and tried his hardest to avoid the flames as he moved through the flaming building. He began to shout for them, "Hey! Gramps and Grandma! Where are you?" As he shouted his lungs filled with smoke, he continued to cough and choke on the smoke, yet he pushed on. He finally heard a response. "Yusuke? Help us!" shouted Mrs. Yukimura. Yusuke then found them hiding in the freezer behind the bar. The walk in freezer had yet to catch fire, but the ice in the room had already melted and the metallic walls were slowly growing hotter, the room would soon be like an oven. "What are you doing in here? You'll cook yourselves alive! We have to get out of here!" Yusuke said between coughs and wheezes. He reached for her arm to pull her out of the room when she shrieked and threw herself onto a heap of what looked like charred clothing. As Yusuke leaned into her, he noticed it was Mr. Yukimura. He was unconscious and severely burned. Yusuke was a bit angered that he was unconscious, but considering how badly he was burned, he was glad the old man wasn't awake at the moment.

Yusuke tried his hardest to lift him without wounding him further. Mrs. Yukimura walked behind him, sobbing in fear as they slowly made their way through the flames. Soon the doorway was blocked by the flames and Yusuke could barely see the doorway. As they slowly approached, he realized a beam now blocked the doorway. Yusuke groaned, wanted so badly to use his spirit gun at that moment. But it was too powerful and would wind up hitting a bystander, none of them could see the wave of spirit energy, but it would still harm someone in the crowd. He ground his teeth together, he was tempted to run up there and remove the beam himself, but he couldn't without alerting Mrs. Yukimura to his abilities, and he'd be severely burned. Before he could do anything, two firefighters came in and moved the beam themselves, shoving it to the side. Yusuke breathed a heavy sigh of relief when he saw them, then he pushed through them with Mr. and Mrs. Yukimura. Once out into the fresh air, he began to cough harder than he had in the burning building. His lungs itched and burned with the black smoke still in them. He was actually pissed that he used to smoke, his lungs might not of taken such damage in there.

He quickly raced, with Mr. Yukimura still over his shoulder, to the paramedics that were standing by. He laid Mr. Yukimura down on the stretcher they had waiting for him. Once Yusuke backed away, he saw how horrible the burns really were. The old man was covered in them, his clothes almost completely gone. His body covered in bloody burns. Mrs. Yukimura was merely covered in soot and her clothes were just barely singed by the fire. But her eyes were filled with tears, and Yusuke swore he heard her mumble the words, "my fault" under her breath. He looked back at the old man and gave a heavy sigh. Did she have an accident and cause the fire? If so, he couldn't imagine what she was feeling right now. He watched as she climbed in the ambulance with her husband and they rode off to the hospital. Yusuke wanted to say that the old man would pull through, but with injuries that bad, there was no way that there weren't some kind of internal damage as well. He would have to fight hard to live through this.

Just as Yusuke was about to head off towards his house, he heard another shriek, this one was familiar and was very close to the building. He turned and saw Keiko's horrified face as she ran for the building. Yusuke lunged in front of her and held her close, she was trying her hardest to claw past him to get to the building. "Mother! Father! Let me go, they're inside!" she began to scream, tears pouring from her eyes. "No they're not. They're in an ambulance on their way to the hospital." Yusuke said calmly, he'd never seen Keiko so upset before. But he needed to calm her down and try his hardest to make the situation easier on her. "They got out alright. Your mom wasn't burned at all, and your dad was out cold. They should be there soon." As he spoke to her in a hushed tone, he rubbed at her arm tenderly. Slowly she relaxed as she absorbed what he was saying. She finally closed her eyes and buried her face in his chest, silently repeating the words, "thank god" over and over.

After awhile, Yusuke pulled her from his chest and looked her in the eye. "Hey, you need to be there with them. Ok? Go on and get a cab, I'll meet you there. I promise." Keiko nodded, she began to wipe at her tears and ran down the sidewalk. Just before she was out of sight, she hailed a cab and hopped inside. Yusuke hoped that her father would make it, he didn't think he could stand seeing Keiko that broken up again. He hadn't seen her that upset since his own death. There was no way she could handle losing her father. And there was no way he was going to do as he planned, not after this. With a heavy sigh, he turned back to the sight of the restaurant. The flames were slowly going out, and police were now at the scene asking witnesses questions. He noticed one or two people point in his direction. He took that as his cue to leave. Yusuke slipped away into a back alley, thankfully no one saw him. At least, he thought no one did.

"Yusuke Urameshi, running away? Now I've seen everything." giggled an all too familiar voice. Yusuke quickly turned around to see the beautiful blue haired woman sitting atop an oar, floating in mid air. "Botan!" he shouted with delight, his usual big grin spread across his face. "Long time no see, did you forget how to write a letter or pick up a phone in the past year?" he walked closer to her and crossed his arms over his chest. "And when have you known me to run from anything?" Botan smiled up at him and gave a small sigh. "Ah Yusuke, you haven't changed a bit, it's so good to see you." Slowly her smile faded, and her big pink eyes filled with sorrow. "Yusuke, I wish I were here with better news. But there are two things I'm here to ask of you."

At that moment, Yusuke's demeanor softened. It then twisted into a glower. "Keiko's dad…he won't make it will he?" he then looked down at the ground with a stern, hard look. "I'm afraid I can't answer that. It'll all depend on him at this point. He's a strong man, hopefully he'll pull through. But he does have some severe bleeding, and some internal damage from the smoke. At this point, it's all on whether or not he wants to live." Yusuke perked up at that, he knew the old bastard well. He wouldn't go down without a fight. And if Mrs. Yukimura did in fact start the fire, then he knew Mr. Yukimura wouldn't let her live on thinking that his injuries were her fault. He'd do whatever it took to stay with her. "Alright then, if you're not here to take his soul, why are you here?" Yusuke asked as he looked up with a grin on his face again.

Botan looked solemn for a moment, and then sighed. "As I said, I need to ask two favors of you. 1. I need you to take a case. And 2. I need you to be in the Spirit and Demon world full time until this is taken care of. This is far bigger than anything you've dealt with Yusuke. You may be gone for a long time."


	4. Chapter 3

Wind and Spirit

Chapter 3

"No."

"But-"

"No."

"Yusuke you have to understa-"

"I said no!" Yusuke shouted as he stormed past Botan onto the streets. He had other things to do, and none of which involved him arguing with Botan. "I'm not the Spirit Dectective anymore, I'm not taking assignments, and I'm not leaving Keiko. Especially not now! Could you have worse timing?" he shouted over his shoulder as she chased after him. "But Yusuke," she pleaded again, "this is big. A very old and powerful being has come back and we're unsure of what its goal is. We need you to help us! Please Yusuke!" she finally caught up to him and grabbed his arm, tugging on it and trying to keep him from going any further.

"I said no, Botan!" he pulled free of her grip, and ran ahead. As soon as he was close to the hospital he slowed his speed. His mind was running in circles. He finally had a good life, he finally had things going for him, but here comes Spirit World to ruin everything, again. He could scream! This day was getting worse and worse. Yusuke was unsure how much more drama he could take. He entered the hospital, and quickly found the OR. As he approached the waiting area, he saw so many people sitting in the area sobbing or shaking, or both. Keiko and her mother were among them. Her mother seemed to refuse being moved from the waiting room, and was being treated right there, Keiko stood sobbing as she glanced from the OR doors to her mother. It looked as if she were too scared to cry, or so much as breathe. As Yusuke looked at the both of them, he couldn't help but glance at the other families nearby, each person was doing something different, but every face was covered in horror. His mind began to reel with their faces all over the streets. He knew that their horrors now would be nothing compared to what was to come.

He heard Botan approach behind him, his hands balled into fists and he ground his teeth together. "24 hours. That's all I ask. Come back tomorrow and I'll go with you." Botan didn't respond. She merely nodded and turned away to leave. "Yusuke, you need to understand, time is of the essence. This evil…it has to be stop-", Yusuke cut her off, "I said, 24 hours." His voice harsh and cutting. Botan cringed and continued out the door. She knew she couldn't change his mind.

His eyes locked again on Keiko. She was looking back at him this time, her chocolate doe eyes were now overflowing with tears. Yusuke gave a small sigh as he approached; he sat down next to her and pulled her in her arms. He knew that no matter how much she was hurting now, it'd be worse if he stayed. He had to leave. And he hated himself for it. Keiko's mother soon had her burns wrapped; she then explained her story to the police while Yusuke pulled Keiko aside into a hall. They needed to talk while they could. "Keiko… I need to tell you something." He started slowly, hoping he could find the right words to say. He couldn't even face her while he spoke.

"I saw Botan follow you inside. You have another case, don't you?" Keiko said softly, she was still shaking, her cheeks stained with her tears. Yusuke then realized that when Keiko looked at him before, it wasn't because of her father. It was because she knew he was leaving. "Yeah, I haven't heard the details yet. But I said I'd leave tomorrow morning. I'll be gone for a long time." They both fell silent after that. They both held their breaths, hoping the other would say something, but they didn't know what to say. "Go." Keiko finally spoke. "Just go. We both know you can't stay, and you can't afford even an hour off the case." She finally turned to him, her eyes about to overflow with tears again, but she fought them back to fake a smile for him. "Besides, the sooner you leave, the sooner you can solve it and come home. So just go. We'll be ok." Her voice cracked on the last phrase, and she began to shake again. Yusuke pulled her tight against him as she cried more; he leaned to her ear and whispered to her. "I promise you. Your dad will live through this and I will come back. I promise." He then released her and took a step back. Keiko hesitated to release him, but finally did. They both felt like there was something clawing at their hearts when they released one another, Yusuke absently rubbed his chest and then turned his back to her and walked out of the hospital. He knew if he saw another tear fall he'd change his mind. And yet, with each step he took, his whole body rejected him walking away.

Once outside, Botan sat on her oar at the door. As if she knew Keiko would change his mind. He inwardly sighed and stuffed his hands in his pockets. This was what he signed up for as a second chance at life. He needed to get used to it. He mentally kicked himself for not realizing this sooner; with him owing Spirit World his life, he'd never get any peace and quiet.

_**Back at Spirit World**_

Yusuke and Botan passed through the Spirit World gates. Yusuke couldn't help but chuckle softly at his memories of this place. "Oh, so you are alive over there? I assumed you'd be silent all the way into Koenma's office." Botan said with a small smile on her face. She was glad that Yusuke finally smiled as well, she couldn't stand him being upset like he was. Yusuke chuckled and shook his head, "Nah, it's just…walking up through here reminds me of my first visit. I was thinking I had to beat the crap out of everyone here, and then to my surprise Koenma was a little runt? I about died laughing!" Yusuke threw his head back laughing, Botan tried to stifle a giggle. She didn't find Koenma's size unusual or funny, but the thought of Yusuke getting his ass handed to him by Koenma would be funny.

However, Yusuke's laughter stopped when they reached the main work room. All the ogres that usually scurried about with stacks of paperwork were nowhere to be seen. It was dead silent in the room, and was completely spotless. No papers thrown on the floor, not so much as a paper clip on the floor. The ogres were nowhere to be found, the phones weren't ringing off the hook. In fact, all the phones were gone. The only thing that looked even more out of place than usual, were the large muscular guards stationed at every corner and entrance of the room. All loaded down with weapons, and not one of these apparitions were shorter than seven feet. This was definitely something bad for Spirit World to be on such high alert. "Botan, how bad did you say things were?" Yusuke asked silently, as they walked on to Koenma's office. Each of the guards appeared unmoving, but Yusuke felt their eyes upon him and Botan. He then looked at Botan; she was trying to be calm, but was shaking a little. In fear? Hatred? He couldn't tell. "They're bad Yusuke. I don't know all the details. All I know is that after everyone was screened, they were sent home. The only ogre here is George. He was ordered to leave, but stayed of his own free will." As she spoke, she showed a badge that hung around her neck to the guards at Koenma's office. They nodded and let her enter with Yusuke. Once inside, Yusuke saw that the entire room was void of paperwork as well. Koenma sat at his desk with his head in his hands. He didn't even spare Yusuke and Botan a glance. "Yusuke, thank you for agreeing to do this. I just want you to know, that if it were up to me, you wouldn't have been contacted at all." Koenma leaned back in his chair and sighed heavily. "This is really bad Yusuke."

"When is it not?" Yusuke spoke sarcastically as he looked over the guards in Koenma's office.

"I'm sure you're wondering about them. They won't hurt you unless you provoke them. After my father's elite task force was helpless against you. Father insisted he get stronger beings, he even resorted to apparitions. They're of the highest class, and have sworn allegiance to my father. To ensure this, there is a chip placed in the collar of their uniform. They harm the wrong person in anyway, and they're brains are fried instantly." As Koenma spoke, Yusuke eyed their uniforms; solid black bones and metal woven together to create the armor. It appeared at least six inches thick, maybe more. Which only made them look more menacing; then he spied the collars. They were metal, black, and covered the entire neck. He didn't see the chip and supposed that was a good thing, and didn't ask further questions.

"So…this case, what exactly happened that has everyone hiding under their beds, begging for mommy?" Yusuke glanced back at Koenma; he didn't quite like taking his eyes off of the guards, but knew he needed to focus on Koenma's case. "Yusuke no jokes, I just notified over 100 families to tell them that in a matter of five seconds, their loved ones went from defending us to bite sized pieces. And that the only way we knew it was really them in there was because we have a damn recording of the whole thing." Koenma shook a bit and turned his head away from them as he lowered the screen and played the video in question. Koenma turned away completely while Yusuke watched. The sounds of bloodied screams and bodies falling filled the room and then disappeared as quickly. Yusuke's mouth fell open as he watched it. He couldn't believe what he was watching. Not only could a little old woman do that kind of damage, but she did it without moving a muscle, and neither did the male. Then they left, the walls dripping blood and pooling it on the floor. Koenma then pounded his shaking fist on the off button. "The rest is us cleaning them up. We're still doing clean up." He growled those words as he stood and walked around his desk. "The demon witch Villanya is the one who was on the screen. She's responsible for that, the thieving of the magical mirror and the soul orb. You remember those artifacts don't you?"

"Yeah, that's the ones that Kurama and Hiei were out to steal."

"That's right. Goki was the one who had the orb. But you killed him and freed the souls of the children he took." Koenma said as he flipped through a file in his hand. "We're sure Villanya understands the advantages and disadvantages of these devices and will still use them to benefit."

"Who is she and how was she able to do that?"

"I can't quite answer that. I don't know much about her. But we have someone who has extensive knowledge on her. They have been working with us for hundreds of years, they're a skilled fighter, and is the only one to of faced Villanya and been able to walk away from it, intact. Somewhat."

"What do you mean 'somewhat'?"

"They died in the fight. But according to our records, they weren't supposed to die for another few decades. So we gave them a second chance at life." Koenma tossed the file he was holding on his desk and then walked to a doorway on the other side of the room, Botan and Yusuke followed as he led them through the building.

"So, he's like me. How is it he's been here for hundreds of years then? Shouldn't he of gone to heaven or hell or something?"

"They should've but didn't. When we gave them that second chance, they asked to stay here and help us fight Villanya. We didn't know what they were talking about. We then realized that their actual death was a complete mystery to us. They told us about what they knew of their death, and we decided we'd find Villanya and take her down."

"So why haven't you yet?"

"Villanya is a hard one to track down. That and we didn't get much information to go on. "

After listening to Koenma for awhile, Yusuke realized he'd never been this deep into Spirit World before. He had no idea where they were anymore, as he continued downward, he began to sense something he'd never sensed before. It was powerful, about the same strength as the guards, that seemed to be everywhere in the building, but it wasn't demonic or spiritual. It was completely different. He couldn't quite tell what it was. He ground his teeth together and gripped his fists tight. Whatever it was, they were getting closer to it.

"You're probably able to sense them by now. Another reason they have been allowed to stay here for so long? They're the one of the only beings left with this kind of power. Before you ask, it's not demonic or spirit energy. We are actually unsure what it is called. Humans who had spirit energy in the past called it magic. They'd claim they were witches or wizards, when really they were just well advanced psychics. However, there was the rare case of being that was born from that of a demon and a psychic. A lot of the time the energies would war with one another until one gained control. That determined what the child's abilities were. Only a few cases were ever noted of a child being born with the energies blended together."

"And he's one of these rare cases? You said 'one of' do I count on that list as well then? I have both."

"Typically, the blending occurs before the child is born. You, Yusuke, had your energies suppressed at birth; only after your second chance at life did your psychic abilities awaken. And once you entered demon world, did your ancestor, Raizen, awaken your demonic energy. Now they only come out when you want them too. Your powers have a light switch, spirit energy or demonic energy. You choose. This girl doesn't have a choice; they're on at the same time. Always. Because of this fact, they're more powerful than anyone else. Adding to that all these centuries of training, they're now the only being who can compete with Villanya's power. " Koenma finally stopped just in front of towering black metal door. Yusuke had noticed the powerful energy had grown stronger the closer they came to the door. Now he knew it was on the other side. He was curious as to see what this being would be like.

Koenma had the guards open the door to the room they all stood before. It led to a balcony on the backside of the building. Yusuke and Botan followed Koenma outside onto the balcony. Yusuke glanced around and realized they were at the very bottom of the building. Just below them under the balcony was the border of Demon and Human world. Yusuke wondered if you had a parachute, how long it would take for you to hit bottom. He could just barely see the lands himself, they probably weren't visible to the human world, but were they to the demon world?

"You can't jump from here and hit the lands; there is a barrier all around us to prevent that. And also, they can't see us." He heard a feminine voice tell him from behind. Yusuke whipped around to look at a woman that now stood behind him. She was of average height with a slim yet curvy figure, she had long silver hair that was pulled back tight and twisted into a bun. Her eyes were as pale blue as the sky. She was wearing a red silk dress that covered her from her neck to her feet, exposing only her arms. "I take it you're Yusuke Urameshi."

"I am. And who are you?" Yusuke asked glancing around for Koenma and Botan. He then spotted them just beside him and the woman. Koenma looked from Yusuke then to the woman. "Yusuke," Koenma said, "meet Cassandra. She's the one I was telling you about. You'll be aiding her on this mission."


End file.
